(CNN) – President Obama has tapped former Georgia Sen. Max Cleland to serve as Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission.

The one-term Democratic senator, who lost a bitter re-election fight to GOP Sen. Saxby Chambliss seven years ago, headed the Veterans Affairs Department under former President Carter, and had been considered a top candidate to fill that post in the Obama administration. The president instead nominated retired Gen. Eric Shinseki to lead the VA.

The White House announced Thursday that Cleland, who lost both legs and an arm while serving in the Army in Vietnam, has now been nominated to oversee the commission charged with creating and caring for military memorials.